Showing posts with label grands. Show all posts
Showing posts with label grands. Show all posts

Sunday, November 30, 2014

Catching Up



This is what greeted me when I got to the old place Friday with the dogs. 

Bone-dry. 

I worried about this, it was expensive.  

However, friend Jill suggested some animal may be jumping around in it. 

Because... 

Today, when we got there... 


There was still some water in it.  I had not been able to get out there yesterday, as 
we were getting ready to have four of our little grands over to make gifts for their parents this morning. 


There were a lot of hijinks!  
(Jax and Jace) 


Some serious rainbow painting 

(took over an hour to do hers... Paiton) 


Some fast dabbing of brushes... (Brynn)


And some serious "Don't Look at me, Mommie"!  from Jace. 


Littlest one Hailey was there, too, 


As was one year old Carson. 

It was a fun two hours! 


I took this of our friend on the way out to the old place with the dogs.  I stopped too long on the street though, and he took off.  He's such a beauty! 

You can see it was windy, and the cold wind was cutting.  We only stayed out for about 30 minutes. 


Lilly generally does not like Jester around her when she is investigating things in the pasture. 


He is tentative when he approaches her...




He got a little too close, and she drove on him just after this. 


But, smart dog... he waited for her to go down to the bottom of the 
pasture, and then he went to see what she was looking at. 


But he also sticks pretty close to mom 

We had a great Thanksgiving, and I was able to 
get to Liberty and help my brother eat his Thanksgiving lunch. 


My brother is slowly fading... and he is my last sibling.  74 years old, 
his dementia has progressed over the last two months, we are not sure why.  His 
hands have become palsied, and his left arm is still in a sling so the broken bone can set. 
He is not able to feed himself... but, as you see, when he takes the fork, anything can happen. 
He had almost overturned his plate into his lap... until I confiscated the fork again. 
He laughed at me, the stinker!  

The residents at the Manor had a regular Thanksgiving dinner of turkey, dressing, gravy, cranberries, potatoes, green beans and sweet potatoes.  They had a mixed fruit crumble for dessert, and 
it all looked good.  

His wife and I are going to sit down Thursday with the Assistant Director of Nursing and see if we can get some prognosis, and why they think he has regressed so far in two months.  At mid-summer, he was able to recognize me and give me a big hug, and now, I am not sure he knows who I am.  I don't play the "Who am I?" game with him, it's not fair. 

I usually say (in a silly tone)  "It is I, Mary Ann, your favorite sister!" and that will usually bring a little smile. 

Keith and I had a quiet dinner at 5:30, and a peaceful evening. 


I have discovered a pond near us where hundreds of geese are staying.  I only had the little camera with me when I went by there yesterday, but I'm purposely going to drive over and get some pictures this week. 


I think it's so neat that the people in the houses on either side of the pond are letting the geese stay there.  You see it's in a natural bowl, and they are protected from the wind. 

I'll try to get more pictures this week. 


Another short video of the crazy Jester, as we got ready to go today. 
He knew we were headed for the warm car, and he got 'cited! 

Enjoy! 

I hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving (if you were in the States) and a great weekend, for those of you outside!  

Today is the first Sunday of Advent, and 
our parish has asked us to sign up for adoration again.  Last year, the first year, I did 9 to 10 AM ... it is Mondays, only, for the next four weeks.  I can't tell you how peaceful it was to go into the empty church and just sit and talk to God for an hour... to slow down... let the spirit rest from all the running and gathering... and 
just ... be at peace.  I'm so glad we are doing it again this year, and I signed up for 9 to 10 AM again, because no one had chosen that slot. 

What a great way to start my week! 




Monday, April 14, 2014

Can You Believe It?


The deck at the old house this morning.  Can you believe this weather? 
I know from seeing blogs today that people far and wide had snow, from a smattering to a few inches! 
Winter... LET GO!!!!

I filled that fortex with warm water, you knew I would. 


I turned the warming lights back on in the henhouses, just for the day. 
We are going below freezing tonight. 


Guess why Lil's on point? 

Secret got in the yard again.  I actually saw her this time, but could not get a picture fast enough. 
She is actually going UNDER the fence, in the one spot that the fencer did not make it tight enough, on the slight terrace in the front.  I brought a cement block from the old place to put in the place we 
thought was the most vulnerable... but I watched Secret try it until she got through.  Thank God Lilly doesn't realize she can get OUT.  
Keith and I are talking about what to do to stop this... we cannot have her in the yard, Lilly wants to kill her. I have never seen her react so badly to another dog... she literally becomes a snarling mass of 
dangerous dog.  Seconds after I took this picture, Abby joined her at the door, growling and barking.  
I slipped out and pushed the door shut behind me, and led Secret out of the yard. 
I barely had the gate shut when Lilly and Abby managed to slide the patio door and get out. 


The perpetrator, who is an elderly lab... she has a white face. 
And here is the rest of the story.  Secret belongs to my second cousin Kevin, who 
lives on the corner.  He lost his yellow lab last Thursday to old age, and was heartbroken.  He admits they have never been fenced in, but I would feel awful if something happened to Secret while she was in our yard, so something is going to have to happen to secure the fence. 


Abby wanted her out of the yard, too! 


Then, it was time for this. 


Keith's daughters, their husbands, and the babies came for pizza and to see the house for the first time. 
We had such fun seeing them, and they got their Easter baskets early. 


Baby Carson, the only one who didn't eat pizza! 

What a lovely end to a wintry day! 

Temps here are going to be going up and down this week... with down more than up... and 
I am going to be working hard at cleaning the old place.  If I can get 
the house finished , I can paint next week.  So... we make progress in leaps and bounds. 

I have been enjoying reading and getting caught up on all your blogs again... and living vicariously thrrough your 
gardening and animal babies!